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A Firing Squad on Camera, a $2 Trillion Tab, and a Nobel Surprise: Your Friday Briefing
Good morning, and welcome to The Morning Sixpack. Today, Washington borrows like there’s no tomorrow, the Pentagon prepares to put an execution on screen, and the Nobel committee hands Donald Trump a pointed non-answer. Here’s what you need to know.
U.S. Budget Deficit Hits Nearly $2 Trillion as Washington Keeps Spending
The federal government posted a $1.993 trillion deficit for fiscal 2026, a 12% jump and the largest shortfall since 2021. Washington spent $7.4 trillion while collecting just $5.4 trillion, and interest on the national debt topped $1.1 trillion, more than the country spends on defense or Medicare. Spending cuts were swamped by immigration enforcement, tax cuts, and a tariff windfall that evaporated after the Supreme Court ruled against the president. With midterms approaching, neither party wants to talk about fixing it, and Trump is even floating $5,000 checks. Budget experts increasingly call the trajectory unsustainable.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Pentagon Plans to Livestream Fort Hood Shooter’s Execution by Firing Squad
The Pentagon says it will livestream the December 3 execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan, the first U.S. military execution since 1961. Hasan killed 13 people and wounded 32 in the 2009 rampage. Legal scholars are split on whether broadcasting a firing squad is welcome transparency or troubling spectacle, and critics note the contrast with Trump’s past condemnation of public executions in Iran. Asked about Hasan’s final requests, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth replied, “Don’t care.” The date may not hold, since a habeas petition could delay the execution for months or longer.
Source: Associated Press
Botched Executions, Secret Drug Supplies, and Cash-Filled Paper Bags: Inside a Prison System Gone Wrong
Tennessee’s former prisons chief, Frank Strada, previously helped oversee three botched executions in Arizona. Strada resigned October 3 after Tennessee’s failed September 30 execution of Christa Pike, who survived two doses of lethal injection drugs. A retired federal judge investigating Arizona found officials allegedly consulted Wikipedia for dosages, stored pentobarbital unlabeled in a Mason jar, and paid doctors hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash delivered in brown paper bags. Tennessee’s updated execution manual closely mirrors Arizona’s, and secrecy has made meaningful oversight nearly impossible. Executions in Tennessee are now suspended while another investigation proceeds.
Source: NPR
ICE Agent at NYC Shooting Has History of Alleged Violence, Illegal Arrests, and False Statements
An ICE supervisor present at Thursday’s Manhattan shooting has a record of excessive-force allegations, unlawful arrests, and inaccurate statements to federal courts. A WIRED investigation identified him as Brenden Cuni, who was seen carrying an AR-15-style rifle at the scene where federal agents wounded a man with a 5-year-old child in his car. Federal judges have ruled arrests tied to Cuni unlawful and found his accounts contradicted by evidence, including doorbell footage. WIRED did not establish whether he fired any shots. Cuni did not respond to requests for comment.
Source: WIRED
Nobel Peace Prize Goes to Gaza Genocide Investigator as Trump’s Campaign Against International Courts Intensifies
South African human rights lawyer Navi Pillay won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her decades of work advancing international law. The 85-year-old former UN human rights chief most recently chaired a commission that concluded Israel committed genocide in Gaza, a finding Israel angrily rejects. The award lands as the Trump administration sanctions International Criminal Court officials, though the committee never named Trump. Pillay, who defended Nelson Mandela and broke barriers in apartheid-era South Africa, will receive the roughly $1.2 million prize in Oslo on December 10.
Source: Reuters
American Oil Refiners Hit Record Profits as Global Wars Send Fuel Prices Soaring
America’s biggest refiners are headed for record third-quarter profits as wars disrupt global fuel supplies. Valero, Marathon, and Phillips 66 are riding a widening “crack spread” between crude costs and fuel prices, with diesel hitting a record $6.53 a gallon. Their shares have more than doubled this year, adding about $224 billion in market value. Trump is pressing the industry to expand capacity before the midterms, but executives see the disruption as temporary and are reluctant to build. Analysts say elevated margins could last into 2027.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
That’s your Morning Sixpack: record debts, record profits, and a government that’s never been more comfortable with the cameras rolling. Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you Monday.
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